The second day of testimony in the trial of Stephen P. Ashley Jr., charged with open and first-degree murder in the 2011 shooting death of Lonnie L. Houston Jr., resumed on Friday, Jan. 11.

Bay County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Nancy E. Borushko outlined her case against 21-year-old Ashley on Thursday, Jan. 10, saying the Nov. 14, 2011, slaying of Houston was a premeditated execution. Ashley sold cocaine on behalf of Houston and when he wound up several thousand dollars in debt, he decided to kill Houston, Borushko said.

Ten-year-old Jessica Schwerin of Bay City was doing well following several hours of kidney transplant surgery on Friday, Jan. 11, according to Amy Tacey, a friend of the family.

Jessica's kidney transplant began around 7 a.m. Friday, while kidney donor Brian Martindale, also of Bay City, underwent surgery shortly before then. His procedure ended in the early afternoon, Tacey said.

The trial of Stephen P. Ashley Jr., who is facing murder charges in the 2011 shooting death of Lonnie L. Houston Jr., is under way as prosecutors began outlining their case against the defendant.

After two days of jury selection, 12 jurors and two alternates were seated around 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 9. Bay County Circuit Judge Harry P. Gill instructed the jurors to be back in the courtroom at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 10.

Jurors on Friday, Jan. 11, saw the lengths prosecutors say Stephen P. Ashley Jr. was willing to go to conceal his killing of Lonnie L. Houston Jr. in the form of a burned-out Cadillac in which the slain man's body was discovered.

Bay County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Nancy E. Borushko projected several photographs of the charred vehicle as it rested on some rocks near the banks of the Saginaw River in Zilwaukee Township. The car's front end and hood still bore some white paint, but the rest was a melted, steel gray hulk.